Obama selects Sotomayor as Supreme Court nominee

President Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and Judge Sonia Sotomayor. Sotomayor, 54, became a judge on the federal district court for the Southern District of New York in 1991 and was elevated to the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan by Democratic President Bill Clinton in 1998.

President Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and Judge Sonia Sotomayor. Sotomayor, 54, became a judge on the federal district court for the Southern District of New York in 1991 and was elevated to the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan by Democratic President Bill Clinton in 1998. (Win McNamee / Getty Images)

President Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and Judge Sonia Sotomayor. Sotomayor, 54, became a judge on the federal district court for the Southern District of New York in 1991 and was elevated to the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan by Democratic President Bill Clinton in 1998.Win McNamee / Getty Images